Leverage - Blank Space
Title: Blank Space
Pairings: Nathan Ford/Sophie Devereaux, hints of Nate Ford/Maggie Collins
Summary: Alternate universe, where Nate and Sophie are partners in crime from the beginning, and Sterling is the insurance cop chasing them.
Author’s Note: Written for Leverageland’s “Write Inspiration” Challenge. Inspired by: Conspirators in pyjamas who exchange deep kisses for passwords. - Pablo Neruda
The title comes from “Blank Space” by Taylor Swift.
*****
Nate is fixing his tie when Sophie pulls Nate close to her and kisses him deeply. “Sterling’s here,” she murmurs against his lips. “And he brought a date.”
Nate groans, partially from the news about their adversary and partially in response to the kiss. To any casual observer they are simply a couple in love, making out in the car before going into the exhibit. It is not the best cover, but it works. Over Sophie's shoulder he sees Sterling walk pass their car without a second glance.
Once he is safely past, Nate reluctantly pulls away from Sophie. There is something vaguely familiar about the woman, though he can’t remember exactly where he’s seen her before. "Do you recognize the woman?"
"No. I wonder who she is."
He frowns. "I wonder what she sees in him."
Sophie arches an elegant eyebrow. "Envious of Sterling?"
"No. It just doesn't seem fair. I mean Sterling has a date, you have a date --"
Sophie grabs his tie and pulls him in for another kiss. "All part of the con, darling." When she pulls away, she smooths the front of his jacket and straightens his tie.
"I know,” he says, but he doesn’t bother hiding his jealousy. They have been working together long enough that he has grown accustomed to her stringing their marks along with the promise of sex. Normally it doesn’t bother him … much. But this has been a long job, and he is ready for it to be over, so they can get back to what passes for normal between them.
She must sense his frustration because when she is done fussing with his tie, she says, “After this we should take a break. Go to Venice for Carnival.”
He smiles, imagining her in a gown and a mask, sneaking them into the finest parties. “Sounds like fun.”
*****
Sterling’s presence puts a wrinkle in their plans, but not enough that Nate and Sophie abandon them entirely. Over the past few months, Sophie has ingratiated herself so completely into the mark’s good graces that even Sterling will have a hard time turning him against her. While she goes to the south entrance to meet the mark, Nate follows Sterling to the north entrance. He needs to figure out just how much Sterling knows and distract him long enough for Sophie to finish the job. Unfortunately, this means that he won’t be able to help her get the goods out of the museum vault. But he trusts that she can handle any problems that come up on her end.
It only takes a moment for him to spot Sterling, deep in conversation with the head of museum security. A few feet away, his date is standing by herself, looking around the gallery with a bored expression on her face. Nate grabs two champagne flutes from a passing waiter and turns his attention to her.
“Can I buy you a drink?” he asks.
“They’re free,” she tells him, “and I probably shouldn’t drink on the job.”
“You work for the museum?”
“Helping a friend.” She gestures towards Sterling.
“A friend, or a boyfriend?” Nate asks.
She laughs. “A friend. A colleague actually.”
Nate smirks at her. “Good.” He takes a swig of champagne. “So what do you do, exactly?”
“I’m an art curator. My specialty is Renaissance art.”
“I love the Renaissance artists. So --” He gestures around the gallery, “did you help them put together this exhibit?”
She shakes her head. “I also do some consulting work, and I’m here helping my friend with a case. He’s an insurance investigator.”
Nate glances at Sterling, who unfortunately takes this moment to glance in their direction. His eyes narrow when he realizes who his friend is talking to, and he gestures frantically for the woman to come to him.
She gives Nate an apologetic smile. “I guess I’m being summoned. It was nice to meet you, mister --?”
There is no point in using an alias, since in a moment he is sure that Sterling will tell her the truth about him. “Ford. Nate Ford.”
“Maggie Collins.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he notices Sterling growing increasingly impatient, and Nate enjoys his rival’s discomfort. He flashes Maggie his most charming smile. “Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Collins. Maybe after this is over, when you’re not working, I can buy you that drink.”
She looks amused at his forwardness, but she doesn’t say no. “Maybe.”
He retreats to a safe distance and pretends to be admiring the pieces while watching Maggie and Sterling’s conversation. He is not close enough to read their lips, but he can tell that they are talking about him by the way she steals glances in Nate’s direction. Her surprised expression turns into a disapproving frown, and when he catches her staring at him, he raises his champagne flute in salute and smiles at her. She looks away quickly, embarrassed to be caught staring.
Sterling disappears from the exhibit hall soon after, and Nate worries that he is looking for Sophie. Sterling knows them well enough to know that if Nate is at the exhibit, Sophie is probably nearby. Nate makes a sweep of the exhibit, looking for Sophie or the mark, but there is no sign of either of them. Hopefully this means that she has already gotten him to take her into the vault, and the job is almost done.
“Mr. Ford.”
Nate turns and is surprised to see Maggie standing behind him. “Ms. Collins.”
“Looking for your partner?”
“I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m just here to enjoy the exhibit.”
“James told me all about you two.”
“Heresay. If he had anything proof, he would’ve thrown us in jail by now.” He tries to use his most charming voice possible, the voice that Sophie calls his sexy voice, but Maggie is not so easily distracted.
“What about that theft at the Getty last year? Were you involved in that?” she demands.
As soon as she mentions the Getty, he remembers where he has seen her before. Their trip to LA had started out as a vacation, a chance for them to relax and get some sun while Sophie went on a few auditions. However, after a dozen disappointing auditions, he had planned the theft to cheer her up.
She takes his surprised silence as confirmation. “Those paintings belong to the Getty,” she says stiffly. “Art is meant to be enjoyed by the people, not just whoever you sold them to on the black market.”
Nate snorts. “The people? Please. Museums aren’t there for the people. They’re there to make money. And what makes you think we sold them?” The one thing they hadn’t been able to figure out was how to smuggle them out of the country on such short notice. They are still sitting in a storage facility in LA, though hopefully not for too much longer.
“So you think you’re Robin Hood? You steal from the rich and give to yourselves.”
“Maybe. Or maybe we don’t worry about things like that.”
“Sterling thinks it’s all about the money with you two,” Maggie says.
Nate shrugs. He can tell by her tone that she doesn’t agree with that statement. “Sterling’s an idiot,” he says honestly.
“So what is it then? The thrill, or some misguided Robin Hood crusade?”
Out of the corner of his eye, Nate notices that Sterling has reappeared and is staring and him and Maggie. He can tell that Maggie is more intrigued by him than perhaps she should be, and he decides to take advantage of that to drive Sterling crazy. “Why don’t you join me for that drink, and I’ll tell you all about it.”
“What about your partner?”
“She can handle herself,” Nate says. “And she’s always interesting in meeting new friends.” Behind Sterling he spots Sophie emerge from the service elevator. Her exit must have gotten cut off, and now she is trying to leave through the crowded exhibit hall.
Hoping to distract Sterling even more, Nate leans forward and places his hand on Maggie’s shoulder. “Come on, let’s get out of here,” he says, putting a little bit of a drunken slur at the end of his words.
Just as he thought, as soon as he puts his hand on Maggie, Sterling is at their side, pulling Nate away from her. “Leave her alone, Nate, or I’ll have you arrested,” he snarls.
“For what? Outsmarting you?”
“Try public drunkenness, harassment, theft. Your girlfriend can visit you in prison, if she sticks around long enough.”
“James,” Maggie says, “I’m fine, really. Mr. Ford and I were just talking.”
“I think Mr. Ford was just leaving,” Sterling says. He gestures to the museum security guards to escort him out.
In the commotion, Sophie has disappeared, and Nate only hopes that she made it out with the goods. That means it’s time for him to make his escape as well. “Pleasure as always, Sterling. And it was nice meeting you too, Ms. Collins. Maybe next time we can get that drink.”
He lets the guards escort him from the premise without a fuss, but when he makes it back to their rental car, Sophie has already gone. He sighs and heads back to the entrance to catch a cab. But before he can, he spots Maggie Collins hurrying towards him.
“Nate,” she says. “Sorry about that, in there.”
“It’s okay,” he says. He knows that he should make a hasty escape now that the job is done, but part of him doesn’t want to say goodbye so quickly. “I’m used to that with Sterling.”
She frowns. “It’s not fair. You didn’t do anything in there.”
That you know of, he wants to add, but he holds his tongue. He has no idea why he has the sudden urge to be honest with her. Maybe it is that despite hearing about his misdeeds from Sterling, she is still looking at him like he is a good guy, an innocent man. It has been a long time since someone looked at him like that.
Abruptly he turns away from her. “I should get going,” he says.
“Wait? Do you want a ride?”
“No, that’s okay, really.” He shoves his hands in his pockets and hurries away.
*****
By the time Nate gets back to their hotel room, Sophie has already changed out of her evening gown and into a pair of his pajamas. She is lounging on the couch, drinking a glass of whiskey, and as soon as he enters, she narrows her eyes at him.
“Where were you?”
He is surprised to see her so upset. He quickly shuts the door behind him so their argument doesn’t carry out into the hall. “Jealous?” he teases.
His attempt to lighten the mood though falls flat. “Should I be?” she asks, staring at him intently as if trying to detect any hint of cheating.
He echoes her words from earlier. “All part of the con, darling.”
She shakes her head, and he can see that beneath her anger, she is genuinely worried. “I saw you with her,” she says quietly. “You’re not that good a grifter.”
He knows that there’s no point in denying what she saw when he was with Maggie. She’s too good at reading people, especially him. It is something about her that he finds both incredibly attractive and incredibly annoying.
He steps towards her and takes a seat beside her. She has been sprawled out on the couch, and when he sits down, she pulls her legs in against her chest and wraps her arms around herself.
“Sophie -- Sophie -- I --” he isn’t sure what to say to reassure her. He leans forward and kisses her, letting the kiss say what he can’t put into words.
He feels her body relax against his, her hands reach up to stroke his cheek. When she finally pulls away, she smiles at him and rests her forehead against his.
“I still got the goods. Even without your help,” she says.
He smiles. “That’s my girl.”